London: Former News of the World editor and Downing Street spin doctor Andy Coulson has been found guilty of phone hacking, but Rebekah Brooks has been cleared on all counts and has walked free from the Old Bailey's marathon phone hacking trial.

The verdict prompted British Prime Minister David Cameron to issue a "full and frank" apology for hiring Coulson as his communications director, despite having received private warnings about the phone hacking claims.

Coulson was charged with conspiracy to intercept mobile phone communications between 2000 and 2006.

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Brooks, one of Rupert Murdoch's most trusted lieutenants and former editor of News of the World and sister paper The Sun, was found not guilty on charges of conspiracy to hack phones, corruption and perverting the course of justice.

Hundreds of celebrities, politicians and members of the public were victims of a phone hacking operation linked to the now-defunct News of the World newspaper.

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Justice Saunders told the jury before they began deliberations that a ''great deal of hacking'' had been going on at the newspaper.

News of the World chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck, investigations editor Greg Miskiw and assistant news editor James Weatherup pleaded guilty earlier, along with investigator Glenn Mulcaire, who was jailed in 2007.

Found guilty: Former government director of communications and News Of The World editor Andy Coulson. Photo: Getty Images

The trial focused on what the senior editors knew about what was happening under their watch.

Former managing editor of News of the World Stuart Kuttner was also found not guilty on a phone hacking conspiracy charge. He thanked his "extraordinary" legal team for the win.

"The diligence, the dedication and perhaps above all the passion of my lawyers over the last three years has been extraordinary, most remarkable and it's to them that I owe a huge and enduring thanks for the unanimous result of the jury today," he said outside the court.

Rebekah Brooks' personal assistant, Cheryl Carter, husband Charlie Brooks and head of security Mark Hanna were all cleared on conspiracy to pervert the course of justice charges.

Brooks was reportedly overcome by emotion on hearing the verdicts and was taken away by the court matron.

The 11-person jury is yet to reach a verdict on on conspiracy charges against Coulson and former NOTW royal editor Clive Goodman that relate to the alleged payment of police officers for secret royal phone directories.

The trial, which began in October last year and is one of the longest criminal trials in British history, was the first in what was expected to be a line of trials arising from an investigation into phone hacking and corrupt payments by journalists to public officials.

Other senior journalists from The Sun, NOTW and The Mirror are on bail or under investigation.

However the Crown Prosecution Service may come under renewed pressure to scale down its investigation after the string of not guilty verdicts in this long and costly trial.

Legal commentators estimated that the combined cost of the defendants' legal team would have stretched into tens of millions of pounds.

Within 90 minutes of the jury handing down the verdict against Coulson, the Prime Minister honoured his 2011 promise to apologise.

In a recorded statement, Mr Cameron said he took full responsibility for employing Coulson, which he did "on the basis of undertakings I was given by him about phone hacking and those turned out not to be the case".

"I always said that if they turned out to be wrong that I would make a full and frank apology and I do that today. I am extremely sorry that I employed him. It was the wrong decision and I'm very clear about that.

"I gave someone a second chance and it turned out to be a bad decision."

In 2011, Mr Cameron told Parliament: "If ... Coulson knew about the hacking at the News of the World, he will not only have lied to me, but he will have lied to the police, a select committee and the Press Complaints Commission, and of course perjured himself in a court of law.

"If it turns out I have been lied to, that would be the moment for a profound apology. In that event, I can tell you I will not fall short."

News UK released a statement saying it had admitted and apologised for wrongdoing at the NOTW, had been paying compensation to those affected and had co-operated with investigations.

"We made changes in the way we do business to help ensure wrongdoing like this does not occur again," the statement said.

"Out of respect for the fact that further legal proceedings will occur, we will have no further comment at this time."

Anti-phone hacking activists Hacked Off released a statement saying the guilty verdict for Coulson, together with the guilty pleas from senior News journalists, "shows that Rupert Murdoch's company has been involved in an extensive criminal conspiracy to hack phones".

Hacked Off executive director Brian Cathcart said: "For years the Murdoch press clung to the story that one rogue reporter was responsible for phone hacking. We now know this was a lie. Far from being an isolated incident involving a few 'bad apples', the trial has shown that the entire orchard was rotten.

"The trial also shone a light on the appalling, systemic newsroom culture of bullying, lies, intimidation and intrusion that has devastated the lives of many people. From royalty and cabinet ministers to victims of crime and bereaved families, nobody was safe."

The UK's Society of Editors said the verdicts in the trial meant the public should put the phone hacking scandal "behind them".

Executive director Bob Satchwell said: "After the biggest police investigation in history and a near eight month trial, the fact that the jury has come back after a week of deliberating with mainly not guilty verdicts puts the whole of the saga into some kind of context.

"No-one condones any journalist convicted of a crime but the practices of the whole of the press have been questioned ... After a hugely expensive investigation and criminal trial the jury concluded that what was suggested to be a major conspiracy at the top of News International was not all that it seemed.

"I trust that the public will put all of this behind them now and appreciate that the press in this country remains the best in the world."